The trade that sent MacKenzie Gore to the Texas Rangers last month signaled a change for the new Washington Nationals front office, but it also marked the first domino of question marks for a roster full of young starters. Exactly one day later, rumors began swirling around shortstop CJ Abrams after a report that the San Francisco Giants made an aggressive offseason trade push before negotiations fizzled, while The Washington Post reported that the Nationals were “shopping” both Abrams and outfielder Jacob Young.

President of baseball operations Paul Toboni pushed back on the use of the phrase ‘shopping’ during an event for season ticket holders.

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“I called both of them and said this is a load of you know what. And they were laughing, but I wanted to be truthful with them. I’m like hey, we’re not shopping you both,” he said.

But the sentiment around Abrams is the same as it was with Gore – there’s no additional motivation to pull the trigger on an immediate trade, but if the right return is offered by a team, then the organization could opt to pull the trigger on a trade.

“Having said that, I also don’t want to lead you down this path like there’s a zero percent chance they get traded because there is a non-zero percent change that you get traded,” Toboni added.

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But with spring training around the corner and Opening Day inching closer, ESPN pointed to a pair of possible trade packages that make sense for the Nationals front office on paper.

ESPN first proposed an intradivision trade with the Atlanta Braves in exchange for for left hander Cam Caminti, right hander Didier Fuentes and infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. The Braves didn’t initially have a need at shortstop until free agent signing Ha-Seong Kim tore a tendon in his right middle figure while reportedly slipped on ice while in Korea and is now expected to be sidelined into at least April. ESPN pointed to the possibility that the Braves look for a long-term answer at the position while noting the potential addition of two more top-100 prospects in Washington’s return.

The second trade may be more sensible given the match with ESPN also projecting a trade with the Boston Red Sox for left hander Connolly Early, right hander Juan Valera and infielder David Hamilton.

While the trade outside of the division already makes it a more logical move for the Nationals, it would also mark a second chance for Toboni to pull off a trade with his former club involving a pair of pitchers after acquiring Jake Bennett in exchange for Luis Perales. Similar to the deal with Atlanta, ESPN also projects two more top-100 prospects including Early, who ranks 48th in ESPN’s prospect rankings, in the Nationals’ return. Hamilton would also help to fill the void left by Abrams departure while adding a pair of possible impact arms to what is already a strong group of pitchers in Washington’s farm system, including one who was tabbed as a bounce back candidate in 2026.